MEDIA RELEASE

Hilo police have closed off a portion of Railroad Avenue to traffic because of an accident that snapped three utility poles in the Industrial Area.

Currently, police have blocked off a portion of Railroad Avenue. Traffic is allowed to the Hilo dump via Leilani Street, but motorists are not allowed to turn onto Railroad. It is undetermined when traffic will be able to return to normal in the area.

The accident occurred about 12:55 p.m. Monday (June 6, 2005) after a driver for Pacific Waste, Inc., left the back hatch up on a trash truck.

As the truck was traveling on Leilani Street from the Hilo dump and turned left on Railroad Avenue, the open back hatch caught utility wires going across Railroad. The wires, caught by the hatch, snapped three utility poles fronting the Meadow Gold Dairies, Inc. In addition, five parked cars — three on Railroad and two on Leilani — were also damaged in the mishap.